Hikaru no naka e, Into the Light
by Yamiyugikun
Summary: Ch 5 up. A Jin and Touya romance on hanging neck island. They search for their freedom in the light and discover it in each other. True freedom comes in ascending to be the light itself. Please RR. Thanks. Yaoi. Jin x Touya.
1. Default Chapter

Title: Hikaru no naka e, Into the Light

Pairing: Jin/Touya

Rating: R

Disclaimer: I don't own chars.

* * *

Jin's POV

I am a wanderer of the eternal darkness, in a world that knows no Light. In that world, the Makai, the sun never sets nor rises. Only a sliver of fiery orb clings hopelessly to the horizon. There, no more than a sad glow of twilight, illuminates this shadowy, godforsaken world. Its gloom weighed down heavily on my soul. From that darkness I come and seek the light.

My team and I are the Mashyoutsukai, the sect of Shinobi who traveled far 3 days and nights, through a cave between the worlds. In the human world, we surfaced on an isle, Hanging Neck Island, bathed in a honey, golden sunshine. I danced, drinking in splashes of warm, sweet sunlight.

"C'mere, Touya!" I cried, with my body washed in light, "The light! We found it."

"Indeed," the diminutive ice youkai replied coolly. A ray of sun danced in his arctic eyes, like a dim light playing off the tip of an icicle, during a bitter and frigid morning. Touya's winter complexion didn't quite absorb the light, reflecting it as if his skin were snow. A glacial wind blew off it, carrying his scent. I breathed it in, tasting it on my tongue as a nippy, but refreshing breeze that aroused my good spirits. My ears sprang up in sheer contentment and my joy spilled out in a broad, lively smile that captured Touya's eye.

Locked in my engagement, he dropped his forbidding gaze. The pale, snow-white skin by the edges his mouth, curved up in a faint, frosty grin, reserved only for me. If he disliked another sect member, the corners of his lips turned downwards into a chilling scowl, making their blood run cold.

"His smile invades me, but I can't hate him. He's cheerful, reminds me of that bird," mused Touya to himself.

A mocking bird in a tree above serenaded, erupting in full song. It's sweet melody soared higher and higher, bursting into its ultimate crescendo, followed by softer notes.

It soothed everyone's soul, except Rishyo's.

The Earth Master scowled. "Never mind the bird. Let's train, you damn Shinobi dogs!"

"I rather naught," I sighed, gazing above in the vast expanse of sky. How I longed to be there, soaring freely with Touya!

I locked in him in my grasp, feeling a current whip about my feet. It whirled gently at first, then aggressively into a gust, that shot us into the sky, on free-flowing zephyr wings! An upward gust lifted us higher, where we hovered in avian freedom.

The briny air smelt of bitter, biting salt and lemons, tangy on the tongue! I gulped it down, its spicy taste like fire. If I were the wind, I'd drink the sea and breath its saline air. If I were the wind, I'd whistle past Touya's ears in thick, wavering sheets, that'd rise and fall with the ocean waves!

A breath-taking panorama stretched out around us in a full 360-degree view, spanning the horizon in a broad expansive arc. There, the sea and sky joined in perfect harmony. Their colors blended together in a shade of deep, cobalt blue. Near the island, the cobalt transitioned into a lighter azure, fading into a distinctive, bright aqua that boarded the shore.

"What an unbelievable view!" remarked Touya, enchanted by the Earth's beauty. "Jin, if we in this Dark Tournament, this paradise shall be ours! Once it is, we'll become One with it, in the Light that envelopes this world!"

Become one with it? What did he mean by that? Would he physically ascend into the Light, his body transforming into Pure Spirit, the invisible energy of God that animates all things?

"Touya, I don' get wot you be sayin', but take me wi' ya," I said in my thick, brogue accent, embracing him in my whirlwind.

His snow-white lips stretched in a feint smile. The light flashed an icy glow in his eyes. "You want to follow where I go?" he asked. "Why?"

I swallowed, feeling my throat tighten. "Em, I…I not sure why…"

The ice master frowned. "I've never done anything without a clear goal in mind. I'm sure you'll figure it out, Touya. Let's find Risho and the others."

* * *

That night at the island hotel I shared a room with Rishyo, Ruka, Bakken and Gama. Touya requested his own room. I couldn't sleep so I knocked on Touya's door.

"Come in," he called out.

As I entered, a nippy Siberian wind blew over me. It whipped the baggy white pants over my legs, making my body shiver. " 'Tis a wee bit breezy, down there in me nether regions. How can he sleep, wi' his bullocks frozen over?"

The wind's freezing touch passed over a thin layer of ice that coated the walls, the carpet, the furniture, anything in this drafty, subzero icebox. Silvery moonlight streamed in the room from an open window. It drew out the icy highlights in the room in a white gleam, casting every shadow in dark gray, bluish in hue.

In this interplay of light and shadow, the strongest beam of moonlight hit Touya's bed in a silver wash, outlining his figure in a halo. Shimmering light danced over pallid youkai skin. Its opaque, matted surface softened the highlights and shadows into subdued blend, subtler in appearance than the sharp, striking qualities of ice.

I wanted to play with his skin, soaking in its cool texture; its wintry tones, and flawless surface, perfectly white and cold like the body of a naked marble stature. He shifted his sculpted figure, bringing to life the curves of sinew and muscle, stretched over frigid bone and flesh.

He hoisted himself up on his small, pointed elbows, asking me. "Can't sleep?"

I shook my head. "Naa, naught a wee bit."

"Then come over," the ice youkai invited.

I manifested my youki as a whirlwind. I glided in it, hovering above his bed. My windy aura swept over the bed sheets he laid on, creating small ripples in the fabric that flowed out. The strongest air current hit Touya's forehead, ruffling his aquamarine bangs. He furrowed his thin, high slanted eyebrows together and a slight frown line formed between them, breaking the smooth planes of his face. "Will you stop that, Jin?" he growled fiercely, in a deep, resonant voice.

I grinned sheepishly at him, stretching out casually in my breezy tunnel above.

"Jin!" he hissed, lunging up at me from his bed.

I laughed heartily, sweeping down, capturing his small, sleek body in my big muscular arms. I whisked him out through the window into the starry, moonlit night. A full moon beckoned to us, with its radiant halo backlighting the sky in blanket of sterling silver. Sparkling, jewel-like stars scattered the sky in a multitude, each one shinning brighter than the next.

As I flew through the air, I glimpsed at their bright reflection, glowing in Touya's eyes. His features softened, for now he enjoyed our flight.

"Jin, fly higher. The stars, I want to touch them," Touya demanded, his body pressed to mine, arms clasped around me.

"Aye, let's go!" I exclaimed with gusto.

We blasted upwards in a vertical cyclone of air, reaching for the cosmos. Touya raised his arms and yelled. His joyful shout of freedom rang through the heavens, its sound clear and liberating like the clamor of bells. The shrill cry shook the stars, letting them know it touched them, then settled down in the tranquility of the night.

* * *

"The stars, ye touched them!" I cried, my ears springing up in excitement. We floated lazily, high in the dark, azure sky above the silvery cloud line, spotting Hangman's island as a mere green dot in the cobalt sea below.

"No, _we_ touched them," Touya replied, resting the weight of his small frame over my larger, bulky body as we drifted in a calm breeze.

It was just the two of us on top of the world, drifting lazily in the night sky, washed in moonlit silver. The moon orbited so close, I wanted to stroke its bumpy, crater scared surface, sweeping up moon dust on my hand. I'd blow on the dust, admiring its fine, shiny grains, as they'd slip out between my windy fingers.

Touya weaved his icy, slender fingers through mine, folding them in the valleys between my knuckles on my bare chest. "Thanks for taking me up here, Jin."

I chuckled, swinging my free arm over his back. We spun through the air on an upwards current. "Glad ye had a grand ol' time!" I said in a jovial tone. "Em, I been thinkin' Touya, about why I wish to follow ya, and become the light."

"Oh? Touya raised his brows.

"I like ya!" I piped out suddenly, wiggling my ears.

He smiled wryly, first in disbelief, then out of amusement. "No one else in our sect would say that, Jin."

"Wot?" I asked, slowing down on our descent in the wind.

"I'm a cold, proud bastard who ignores everyone, so says Bakuken," replied Touya indifferently, shrugging his shoulders, while he lay on me.

I paused in midair, squeezing the ice master in my grasp. "No, you be not! Touya, you're honorable, moral, and honest, everything a shinobi _should_ be. That be why I…I like ya."

To be continued…


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Touya's POV

Jin liked me.

Against the night sky moonlight glowed from behind him, brightening the outsides of his round, cute face. The inner zones of his face fell into a curtain of gray shadow, pulling my gaze there. An even darker shade of gray lined his lined upper lids, accented by thick black lashes that rimmed his flashing eyes. The shadows shifted as his brows rose and eyes widened. Their deep, solid navy hue matched the night sky in tone, animated by a touch of gaiety.

I wished I could revel in the joy he felt. "Jin, you said good things about me. It's quite a surprise because no one's ever really...liked me, least of all me."

As we glided in a downward slant in the wind, like gulls dropping on the wing, he locked his eyes on mine. Sadness filled them, drowning out their joy. His ears hung low, weighed heavily by grief. "Ya can't see wot a wonderful person be ye an' o', it kills me, Touya!" he cried aghast. "Why?"

I sighed, feeling myself plummet like a fallen star from the heavens, past the horizon, into the Earth below.

* * *

Jin's POV

No sooner than we reached the beach, Touya sprang out of my whirlwind, kicking up sand behind him as he trudged off.

I played in my wind tunnel, projecting out small blasts of air onto the rippled sand below. Small, white, silky grains wafted their way up in the spinning current and an entire cyclone of beach sand spun around me. Each grain glittered, like cracked diamond shards, broken up from the ebb and flow of sea. I caught some in my fist, feeling its course texture imprinted on my skin. I spread my fingers a bit and it slid through the cracks, fine as fairy dust in the night wind. If moon dust feels like this, someday I'll take Jin to the moon when we've become light, so he too can play with it.

I chased the grains out to the wine-dark sea, where the sandy tornado broke up. Wave after wave rolled in, the indigo water between each swell rose from its trough, curving up in a full circle as it crested over, tumbling over in bubbly lines of foam that licked the wet sand. As the waves crested and crashed, briny ocean spray misted my face, coating it in bittersweet, salty layers that cleansed deeply the pores in my skin. I licked the salt off my lips, savoring its sour, sharp taste. I breathed in the oxygen rich air, feeling every cell in my body charged with life and energy. Good god, it felt great to be alive!

"Lively, ain't it?" called out the ice youkai in lively voice from behind me.

I nodded. "It sure be, eh me friend?" I cried back heartily, wrapping an arm around him.

He smiled softly at me, leaning his head against my chest; his gaze skipping over the sand's mirror surface reflected the moonlight in a single, flickering line. It danced across the ocean in rippling flashes, creating an endless read that shimmered out to the horizon, where sea and sky met. "See that shiny road that crosses the sea, Jin? If I traveled on it, I'd find the light. Just how far would I have to travel to find it?"

"Forever. But ya wouldn't find it," I replied.

"Why?" mused Touya.

"Cause it be outside of ya. Wot if 'twas right in here?" I laid a hand on Touya's chest, feeling his heartbeat. "Inside yer heart is a seed, Touya. Wi' a wee bit o' sunlight, it'll grow, 'an you'll see, wot a beautiful person ye are."

"And where's that light to grow that seed?"

"Look deeply, in me eye Touya. Wot do ye see?" I asked.

He gazed into my irises. "A twinkle," Touya said. "It flickers like the stars in the night sky. Is it…light?

I smiled. "Me inner light. That light in me will grow the light in ya, Touya. Then we'll be one in the Light that envelops this world."

To be continued…


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Touya's POV

Jin, you are my light. Without you, where would I be in life? I'd be living in the darkness, in a day-to-day meaningless existence. In your arms, as I hear the waves lap up, their cadence tender. I wonder, how many generations of humankind have passed, with the ebb and flow of time. They lap against the sand, reaching their peak in life. The tide, like the force of death, sweeps them out to sea as they cling desperately to life. Such is the human condition. In their struggle do they find the light?

Unlike humans, the life of a youkai is not like a wave. Our lives last longer, hundreds of years in comparison to humans. We live in a world where the sun ceases to rise or shine. Only a silver of dawn clings to the horizon in a world that knows no light. There, we youkai live as wandering spirits, without hope or meaning in life. Though human lives are shorter, God gives them a chance to seek what we don't have, the light.

Perhaps by fate, I've been given the chance humans have of seeking the light. When I searched for light outside of me, I never found it. I searched in the sunset, sea and sky to no avail. I even searched the stars, reaching in the heavens. But I fell, pulled back by the tide of time that takes human life. And then I saw it, the star that sparkled in Jin's eye. That star in him, the light, rescued me from time and its tides. Here I am in your arms, Jin, all yours forever and ever, embraced by the light.

This light its everywhere in you. From the way you smile to joy you sing you are eternally my light. The light in you grows the light in me when I rejoice in your presence. Now I understand what you meant by that.

One day, will I love and forget, who is you, and who is me, as we merge together as one? We'll flow together in the sun, the moon and stars in the light that envelopes this world. That way I'll be together with you and I won't suffer anymore. Yet now, we are already together as the sunrises and seagulls cry over the ocean.

I yawned stirring on his chest. How the night passed so fast in the presence of my light. He's done so much for me, what can I do for him? Perhaps some breakfast will rouse his sleepy senses. That's it! I'll catch some fish for him.

Jin's POV

Droplets of fresh ocean spray coated my weathered and sleepy face. The waves trickled in lapping at my feet, higher as the tide now rose. I shifted my position scooting back in the sand to keep dry. I moved into a slightly, hallowed out depression where Touya. Where was he? "Touya! Where be ye?" I hollered, my voice ringing out loud and clear.

"Here!" replied a distant echo down the beach, where the shoreline curved in, forming a round, circular cove divided from the ocean by a thick, barrier roof. Gently slopping hills, rich and green, rose around the cove cutting off the vast expanse of horizon. That way, I took in only the inlet's rich beauty. From its coral-gated entrance into the receding shallows, a deep blue, indicating a deep range of depth, gave way to lighter patches of blue, and finally the aqua rim of water near shore where the majority of coral grew. Between the major coral growths and shoreline, in clear water one-foot deep, yellow and green, a single figure waded. Touya.

I flew down in my whirlwind, descending by him on the shore. "An' wot ye be doin'?" I asked, taking refugee in the shade of some palm trees from the blistering, tropical sun.

Touya smirked, glancing over his shoulder. "Fishing, Jin."

I laughed, reclining back on a sand pillow I scooped up. "How?"

"With this." Touya grinned, extending an arm. He concentrated his youki there until it froze over, creating an ice sword he used in battle. "I call it the ninja art of ice sword-spear fishing!"

"Eh?" I gawked at him, all wide eye and surprised that he did something so silly.

"It'll work, I swear," Touya defended. Then he wadded out a good distance into the aqua water where the coral grew, stabbing as he swam. "Got it!" he yelled, raising his spear-sword arm, a big fat fish speared at the end of it.

"Well, God blind me! It works!" I cried out, jumping for joy.

"Hah, of course. One marlin sushi comin' up!" Touya shouted, waving his bountiful catch.

When Touya got to shore, he laid the fish on a palm leaf, slicing off its outer layer of skin. He cleaned it, placing thin, soft strips into rolled up palm leafs.

"Close your eyes," said Touya, taking a piece in his mouth.

As I shut them, a bitter chill hit my lips, almost numbing them. Soft youkai lips, their texture pliable and smooth brushed against mine. Between them his tongue darted out, opening my mouth. It pushed in a lump of raw, spicy marlin that I swallowed, stung by a slight aftertaste in my throat. We finished lunch, feeding each other like that.

To be continued…


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Hi Tankar! Thank you so much for your review. It's inspired me to keep writing. I dropped it for a while. I'll try to keep writing it some more. This fic will be one more chappie and I'll probably end it.

* * *

Jin's POV 

"I'm going for a swim," said Touya, beat down by the high noon sun. It's heat felt especially uncomfortable for an ice youkai like Touya, accustomed to subzero, freezing weather.

First he removed his dark blue foot coverings, tossing them aside. Next he unbuckled the purple belt by his waist that kept his one-sleeved tunic in place. With the belt gone the tunic draped freely over his thin, athletic frame. The fringes of the cloth undulated about as the sea breeze blew over in a rhythm of wavering fabric. Pallid, icy fingers pulled it up over his head, where it fell by his other attire, strewn in the sand. Clad only in a navy blue undershirt, over a long-sleeved fishnet top on his upper body, and flowing blue-gray pants he invited me over. "Care to help me?"

My ears rose as a blush crossed my face. "Um, ya sure Touya, laddie?"

He laughed, the cool ring of his voice like chimes on a winter wind. "Of course, now get over here."

I helped him take off the blue undershirt and fishnet top in one swift movement. The warm sun kissed his bare torso along the smoothly muscled planes of his chest, stomach and back that never saw its light. His skin resisted the rays as his blood froze underneath, causing ice crystals to form all over his body, as his icy essence could never truly be melted.

"Brrr! Cold," I remarked, running my hand over Touya's frosty back.

A slight chuckle escaped Touya's lips and he breathed on my arm, his exhale blasting it with nippy arctic wind, icing it over.

"Let me help you with it, Jin." He bent over licking my iced arm. "Mmm…salty from the sea air that coated it. I'll just have to suck it and make it melt."

With my other free hand I ruffled his perfectly slick back blue hair in the shape of a turban. "Naughty 'ol fiend. This be ya way of keepin' me 'ere? How 'bout this?" I manifested my whirlwind around me, hoisting Touya up in the air with his tongue stuck on my arm.

The ice youkai moaned unable to pull it off. I chuckled and he groaned, the timbre of his voice rumbling loudly in the back of his throat.

"Okay, laddie." I spun onto my back flying out over the bay with Touya atop me, his mouth still stuck to my arm. I spit in the palm of my hand, rubbing the saliva on Touya's aching tongue, released by the heat which set it free from my arm.

"I'm gonna get you for that!" Touya hissed, grabbing me by the neck. He chanted an ice spell and ended up utilizing so much youki that he froze us both over into ice blocks.

My windy youki locked up and my flight ceased and we plunged down into the bay waters below. We drifted about as icebergs for a good hour, bobbing up and down in the sea current that carried us out to a sand bar in the middle of the bay. Once caught by the sand bar I punched my way out of the remainder of the ice and freed Touya too.

"Way to go, Touya," I remarked sarcastically, retreating under a palm tree that grew out of the sand bar to catch some shade.

He crawled over to me on all fours and grinned. "But that was fun, Jin. You will let it go, won't you?" Touya persuaded me.

"Humph." I crossed my arms, turning my head away.

"I know you will cause…" On his knees, Touya took my chin and turned it in his direction.

I frowned, glaring back through half covered lids. "Cause wot?" I muttered.

"You love me," Touya whispered under his breath. A sparkle of light twinkled in his pale blue slit eyes. Somehow the light in me awakened the light in him, and it made him all the more beautiful.

"B-but I just liked—" He cut me off.

"Enough, Jin. There's no need to hesitate. I've always been like my element, cold and lonely. I thought I was better than everyone on our team and that made me arrogant. So I ignored everyone and had no friends until I met you. You taught me freedom is in the light. And the light is right…in here." Touya laid a hand upon my heart and frigid snow-white lips descended on mine, chilling my skin to the flesh.

I moaned, nipping on his upper lip. "Oh, Touya, not out 'ere in the open. I wish to take ye to a special place, over there."

At the end of the snaking sand bar, surrounded by aqua, clear crystal water, a cluster of trees grew up over the horizon. It felt as if God made that place just for us. Inside our feet sunk into soft, white sand silky to the touch. The thick, palm tree canopy enclosed us in a grove hiding us from the rest of the world. Tropical plants burgeoned in the shade blossoming in vivid colors or range, red, purple, pink and yellow. Flowered vines hung from tree trunks over the colorful ground plants, soaking the air with their heavy perfumed scent that nearly intoxicated Touya and I. Besides coconuts exotic fruits like lilikoi and mango grew on a few odd fruit trees.

We cracked open some coconuts to drink its juice to satisfy their thirst. I took the empty shells and punched holes in their ends with the pointy fang that stuck out on my lower lip. Then I took some taro leaf woven into a thick rope, looping it through the holes. I stripped off the white sashes that crisscrossed my chest, tying the coconut shells on in place. And I shoved the ends of palm tree leaves into the waistline of my pants so they hung over, draping to my knees to create the illusion of a grass skirt.

I bent my knees and swung my hips in a figure eight, dancing over to Touya with my arms wavering in the air.

Touya coughed, hacking out his food. "What the hell? Hula dancing Jin!"

I maneuvered behind Touya, blowing in his ear. "Ah, aye laddie. Where were we? Whan we first arrived, I saw some island lasses dancing in the hotel lobby. An' the lads fancied it, so I figured, ye might too."

The ice youkai doubled over in laughter. "But Jin, you're a guy, last time I checked. What odd human behavior…"

"They be real, ain't they?" I chuckled, running his hands over my coconut breasts.

"Let's find out." He winked at me, fondling them with his fingers. "Ha…nipples didn't harden so…they're fake…" Touya reached behind my back undoing the taro knot. The bra fell to the sand, revealing my bare chest.

The ice youkai smirked, taking me on in his lightly muscled arms. "You've changed my life Jin. Without you, I'd be wandering in the darkness. If only we became the light together and never returned to the suffering youkai world."

"If ye became me light, I'd take ya to the moon 'an other lovely worlds. I want to be the light wi' ya," I said longingly.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Jin's POV

"You're already my light, Jin. You've got nowhere to go but here." Touya locked me in a firm embrace.

We tumbled down on the ground. Touya lay on his side, coated in sand. He pillowed his neck with one arm, with the other around my shoulders. I snuggled closer, burrowing my face in the crook of his neck, dropping feather light kisses.

" 'An I'll always stay. Cause here be me home, wi' ya."" A wide grin crossed my face, exposing a pair of small pearly fangs.

"And mine too," Touya murmured, releasing his hold on me. His thoughts wandered elsewhere.

The ice youkai remained motionless, his breath a chill upon my skin. The puff of air didn't feel sensual, now frigid instead of cool, absent of all emotion. His entire youki iced over threatening to numb my body.

"Touya, me friend?" I paused. My pointy ears sank as the excitement dropped.

He brushed me off sitting up. Slit eyes narrowed, azure irises glassed over turning even colder. Regret writhed beneath their surface. "Jin, I wish we could stay here forever. The truth is we can't. Sooner or later Reishyo will know we're missing. And according to the Shinobi Code desertion is a crime punishable by death."

The ice youkai's chiseled features sharpened back into the expressionless mask he usually wore in battle. His skin paled over to a ghastly white, brows froze in place, and tightly drawn lips manifested the iciness of his soul.

"I despise Reishyo," Touya spat, and his anger flared. "He holds no respect or remorse for fellow shinobi and their sacrifices in battle. He doesn't care as long as he wins. He's lost all traces of honor. To me, as a shinobi of the Mashyoutsukai, honor is everything." His visage dropped burning an angry trail into the sand.

I shuddered, scooting away lest his wrath struck me dead. His mood killed my smile, stripping me of any joy I felt in the present. The wind in my aura changed, no longer a playful breeze but a hurricane that whipped its surroundings. I'm usually cheerful as a lark, yet once in a while when Touya crashes he takes me with him. This was one of those times.

I sighed wishing I could help him. I dealt with Reishyo by ignoring him or knocking the damned bugger out. Poor Touya took it to heart. He's an honest and righteous one who stands in the face of corruption. Reishyo, like most youkai, believed that the strong should dominate the weak. This bred violence leading to internal dissonance in the clan itself.

Before we arrived in the human world Touya poured out his heart to me. Weighed down by a life of anguish he uttered, "Jin, I'm sick of the bloodshed, the wars. To survive everyday we kill, or be killed our selves. I just want a peaceful life. To me the light means freedom. Finding it gives me a reason to keep living in this suffering world. I'd give anything to have it. Even my very life because that's how much I want it." A strong sense of determination arose rooted in the pit of his soul.

"I hear ya, ol' friend," I said, stirred by his conviction. "Ya know I feel the same, Touya. I'll find us the light before we're a dyin', I swear on me life!" His determination fostered in a found new will inside of me, which would someday lead us to the light.

"That means you promise me with your life." Touya's countenance stiffened in absolute seriousness. "Why are you doing this for me, Jin?"

"That be...cause..." I hesitated, doubting myself deeply. "I dunno why..."

After arriving in the human world and spending time with Touya, I now know the reason why: I love 'im dearly wi' all me heart.

Touya's POV

"Ye remember our promise, Touya?" Jin asked suddenly, grabbing my shoulder.

I glanced over with an expression cold enough to freeze him.

It nerved him and dark blue eyes went wide with fear. Then his hand lifted from me falling lazily to his side. With a quick breath he manifested his youki rising up in a small whirlwind. It gusted straight at me blowing away all bitterness out onto the vast expanse of sea. Jin grinned playfully with his arms behind his head, and legs casually crossed, as he bobbed about in the air.

I forced a smile, even though it came out stiff, marked only by the slight upward curve of lips. Jin had this effect on me. A person, no matter how bitter, could never stay angry for long in a presence like Jin's. He is the wind that drives off the storm giving way to sunny days. Without him I'd be frozen over heartless from my cold and icy nature.

"No, I forget," I responded quietly at length, seeking refuge in the shade on this sandy isle in the middle of the bay. Ice youkai detested heat and I was no exception.

Jin glided above me. His pointy ears shot up like coiled springs into the fiery mane of hair. He said in a thick brogue accent, "Back in the youkai world, I made ye a promise. I'd a find us the light. 'An I swore on me life. Jin don' go back on his promises, so don' worry, Touya."

His reassurance eased my pain. "I won't. Sorry, Jin." My thoughts raced back to our conversation in the youkai world as I sat down reclining back against a trunk. "I wanted peace and we talked about the light. But now we have it, don't we?" Doubt tinged my voice.

"Aye, the light," Jin remarked. His whirlwind dissipated as he alighted on the earth. "I been a thinkin' 'bout it. The light mean many things. Between us as friends..."

"Or lovers," I teased, pressing a pale finger to his lips.

He kissed it and a hearty laughter escaped him. "That too," Jin agreed, without question. "We're givin' one another hope. That be one meanin' o' light."

I gave a deep nod. "And the other?"

He fell silent resting his large frame against me. "Freedom, me friend," Jin whispered with passion. "Freedom ta live how we choose wi' out the suffering o' the Makai."

"And from Reishyo," I added, sinking back into his naked chest, taught with the swell of firm muscle.

"Oh, that damned ol' bugger!" Jin muttered. Reddish brows knit together in a slight frown. It gave way as his the corners of his mouth broadened into a grin. "I ain' worried 'bout him o wee bit. It be this world..."

"The human world. This island. It's the light, isn't it? Compared to Makai life it's heaven." My heart sank at the thought of life in the Makai.

"Not exactly," Jin corrected, tilting my chin up with his index. His eyes narrowed locking in on mine. The brightest hue of emotion stirred in them. "The human world got wars too, naught as bloody o' the makai's. It's cause the sun don' shine here all the time. If there did, then no war, ya see?"

A sudden realization dawned on me. Jin meant the light would be a world without suffering, pain, or darkness of any sort. The human world still had them, just not as bad as the Makai. Could it be he referred to another place instead? "Jin, are you saying this world truly isn't the light, because it's temporary here?" I cast a questioning look.

"That be right, Touya." Jin showered me with a gaze of boundless affection, embracing me tightly.

I buried my face in the base of his neck, planting an icy kiss. It's cold charge coursed through his body from his shoulders chilling him to the bone. Teeth clattered in his mouth shaking from their base in his gums. I chuckled. "So where do we find this place?"

Jin sprang up and hopped around trying to warm himself up. "Not a wee bit sure," he said, shivering from my kiss. "Let's be a goin' back ta the hotel. I'll think from there."

Jin's POV

At the hotel Touya headed up to his room to report to Reishyo and the others under the pretense of training. The captain didn't care as long as we fought his battles in the arena and he got what he wanted. I, for one, felt restless. The light consumed my thoughts. Where would I find it? That bright world I could be free from the darkness forever. If I found it with Touya, it'd be a place where the sun never sets or rises, because it's always there up in the sky shinning day and night. There, we could be free for all eternity. That's my dream and Touya's. That's what we live for.

I paced about the hotel lobby alone lost in my mind. The grand and spacious lobby looked lonely without people and youkai to fill it. Couches huddled together around a low glass table across from the check in counter, abandoned without sitters or loungers. Not a soul worked on their lovely burnished surface, colored many hues of brown.

An echo split the silence. The sound of wooden clogs called geta that clattered over the smooth marble floor. Geta were a style of traditional Japanese footwear with a flat wood sole, raised up on two wood strips with a V shaped thong between the big toe and smaller ones. Women usually wore them with a kimono for special occasions. But who'd dress like this at a bloody youkai tournament? As I speculated it stopped.

A short girl stood before me with large pink eyes that twinkled. Her skin glowed pure milk white without a mark or blemish. She tied her sky-blue hair in a high ponytail that reached below her shoulders. A light pink kimono the color of cherry blossoms wrapped around curves of her physique and its lengthy sleeves flowed to her feet. Small and dainty, they poked out from under the hem of her kimono in wooden geta. She had a pleasant wind about her, neither youkai nor human in feeling. Who could this lovely stranger be?

She swallowed under my scrutinizing gaze. "May I help you?"

"I be lookin' fer somethin'," I piped in a jovial tone. My friendliness put her at ease.

"Oh, come, come." With a wave of her slender hand she motioned for me to follow her. She shuffled towards the couches, planting herself on a sofa across from me, with the low glass table dividing us.

I plopped down on a leather couch behind me, stretching out comfortably. "Wot are ya, missie? Not youkai or human I take it."

"Normal humans wouldn't know a thing and I'd fool most youkai, but you're sharp," she said, smiling faintly. "I'm a shinigami, a soul reaper who works for the Spirit World."

"Do ya shinigami grant wishes?" Anticipation filled me.

"Wishes?" Her shoulders sank back and she sighed. "No, but the Spirit World does. That is if you win the Dark Tournament. Most who enter never leave alive."

I edged forward on my sofa listening intently. "Wot happen after death?"

"Shinigami like me wait on the other side, escorting the departed to Koenma-sama's place, where they're judged," she explained, with arms folded over her lap. "Their deeds determine the next life of their rebirth. For example, there's a human who likes fighting. They might be reborn in the Makai, a world plagued by wars. Or there's a youkai who yearns for a peace. They could enter one of the heavenly worlds."

"Worlds, eh, lassie? There be more than one?" I exclaimed in amazement. An elated hue lit my face. This could be the light Touya and I seek.

Her smile broadened. "That's right. The Makai contains seven levels of existence. So do the Heavenly worlds."

"Tell me 'bout 'em!" I piped, skipping over to sit on the arm of her sofa.

"Well, okay." She shifted her position facing me. "If you're a virtuous soul who does good things, like feel compassion for the suffering, love those around you, do great kindness or bring other's hope, you're probably enter the Heavenly worlds. The more virtuous you are, the higher the realm you'll inhabit. The highest level is the soul plane, a world made entirely of light. Once you're there you'll never incarnate again and you're free for all eternity."

At last I learned where the light truly was! If Touya and I won the Dark Tournament the Spirit World would grant our wish to be reborn on the soul plane. However, if we lost it what could be do?

"Me 'an o' friend want ta go there, cause we be searchin' fer the light." I bent down, whispering in her ear.

Her pink eyes widened with surprise. "Oh, how unusual! Most youkai live to fight. That makes you different."

"Ya think so?" Weariness weighed down my voice. "A good fight do stir me well, but I tire o' the wars 'an endless death. Finding the light be the reason we live. I'd give me life ta find it, fer Touya's sake."

"You'd do anything for the light," the shinigami said, admiring my devotion. "I'll do anything I can to help." She rose to her feet meeting me eye to eye. "If you can't win the tournament and have your wish granted, don't worry. I'll come up with something else."

"Wot a nice lass ye are." I felt a great sense of gratitude towards this young lady.

"My name's Botan." She introduced herself bowing her head slightly. "But don't tell anyone, okay? I'm supposed to be helping Team Urameshi."

"Yer secret be safe wi' me, Botan," I replied with a wink. "Call me Jin, lassie."

"Jin, eh?" Botan shook my hand. "You're on Team Mashyo, right?"

I nodded. "We fight tomorrow. 'An thank ya fer everythin'."

"I'll be watching from the bleachers. Goodnight, Jin." A touch of hope sparkled in her irises.

"G' night," I said back softly.

After our meeting Botan departed from the lobby. The silence penetrated once again. For the first time in life I felt that I might really find the light. For Touya and all the love he's given me, I'll never give up.

TBC


End file.
